Soybean futures rise 1% to ten-week high

Soybean futures rose in American trade to December 6 highs as the dollar index lost ground to one-week lows, following earlier data from the US, the world's largest soybean producer and exporter, including Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech. 

As of 08:58 GMT, soybean futures due on March 15 rose one percent to $10.1175 from the opening of $10.0175, while the dollar index fell 0.57% to 89.69 from the opening of 90.21, marking February 7 lows. 

Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President Loretta Mester spoke about the economic outlook and monetary policy at the Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce Government Affairs Breakfast, while the NFIB Small Business Index rose to 106.9 from 104.9 in December, beating expectations of 106.2. 

Jerome Powell said the Fed is continuing its policy tightening and will remaining cautious on any risks on financial stability, adding that the global economy is recovering strongly, while the monetary policy isn't offering enough well-spread support yet for labor and inflation, even though they're quite close to their targets.

The US Department of Agriculture reported total inspection of 1.304 million tonnes of soybeans in the week ending last Sunday, up 15% from the previous week's 1.1 million tonnes, while down from 1.65 million in the same period of last year, with total inspected soybeans in the current marketing year amounting to 34.7 million tonnes, down from 40.5 tonnes in the same period of last year.

Productivity forecasts for total cultivated land fell by 100 thousand acres to 90.1 million acres, with the USDA expecting total soybean output at 470 million tonnes in the current agricultural year, up from 455 million in previous forecasts. 

Another US official report last month showed that soybean returns fell 6% from 2016, while total produce reached a record 4.39 billion bushels, up 2% from 2016, averaging 49.1 bushels per donam. 

Soybean inventories rose 9% from 2016 levels to 3.16 billion bushels, while sales fell by 65 million bushels to 2.16 billion bushels, amid increased global competition from Brazil in particular.